The Onion Apologizes For Calling Quvenzhané Wallis A “C*nt”

After sending out a crude tweet about nine-year-old Oscar nominee, Quvenzhané Wallis, satire news site The Onion has issued an apology.

“On behalf of The Onion, I offer my personal apology to Quvenzhané Wallis and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the tweet that was circulated last night during the Oscars. It was crude and offensive—not to mention inconsistent with The Onion’s commitment to parody and satire, however biting,” CEO Steve Hannah wrote in a statement.

“No person should be subjected to such a senseless, humorless comment masquerading as satire. The tweet was taken down within an hour of publication. We have instituted new and tighter Twitter procedures to ensure that this kind of mistake does not occur again. In addition, we are taking immediate steps to discipline those individuals responsible. Miss Wallis, you are young and talented and deserve better. All of us at The Onion are deeply sorry.”

The Onion — known for their ridiculous headlines, and the comical approach they take at reporting on news stories — found itself in hot water, when they sent out an offensive tweet calling Wallis a c**t.

“Everyone else seems afraid to say it, but that Quvenzhané Wallis is kind of a c–t, right? #Oscars2013,” the tweet read, which was immediately met with outrage from the Twitterverse, as people — including many celebs — flocked to defend the young star.